Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 24 (2011) 1201–1217
7th International Strategic Management Conference
International branding strategies of developing countries: The case of Arçelik
Tanses Gülsoya,*, Özlem ÖzkanlÕb, Richard Lyncha,b,a a Beykent University, Istanbul 34396, Turkey b Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey a,b Middlesex University, London, UK
Abstract
The international branding process of firms from developing countries is an area of scarce research. This paper is an attempt at filling this research gap by looking at the internationalization of emerging market companies from a branding perspective. Our aim is to explore the possible link between international branding decisions and international expansion of the firm through an in-depth study of Arçelik, the market leader in Turkey’s home appliances industry. Arçelik has adopted international expansion as a strategy for ten years, and it has aimed at branded growth in international markets for nearly that long.
Through in-depth interviews with six senior company executives as well as two industry experts, we study the branding path adopted by a developing country firm. th ©©2011 byby Elsevier
Ltd.Ltd.
Selection and/or peer-review underunder responsibility of 7th 7International
Strategic
International
2011Published
Published
Elsevier
Selection and/or peer-review responsibility Management Conference
Strategic Management Conference
Keywords: Global strategy; Developing country strategy; Turkey export strategy; Turkish home appliances manufacture; Branding strategy
1. Introduction
Over the last twenty years, Turkey has significantly increased its international trade in manufactured products. It is possible that this has been built on the basis of its lower labour costs compared with those of developed countries and the willingness of both Turkish national companies and multinational
enterprises
References: Tanses Gülsoy et al. / Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 24 (2011) 1201–1217 Bonaglia, F BSH plans new dishwasher plant in Turkey. Hürriyet Daily News and Economic Review, 2 January 2006. Retrieved from www.hurriyetdailynews.com on April 5, 2010. London: Sage Publications Ltd., 2002, ch. 9. Doz, Y. L. Strategic Management in Multinational Companies. Oxford: Pergamon, 1986. Dunning, J.H. Multinational Enterprises and the Global Economy. Wokingham, Berkshire: Addison-Wesley, 1993. Tanses Gülsoy et al. / Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 24 (2011) 1201–1217 Hollensen, S Indesit confident in Turkey. Hürriyet Daily News and Economic Review 21 March 2010. Retrieved from www.hurriyetdailynews.com on April 5, 2010. Liu, X. and Buck, T. (2009). The internationalisation strategies of Chinese firms: Lenovo and BOE. Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies 2009; 7 (2): 167-81.